


Affinity

by ravenandwritingdesks



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-25
Updated: 2017-04-25
Packaged: 2018-10-23 18:31:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 15,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10724841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ravenandwritingdesks/pseuds/ravenandwritingdesks
Summary: No matter their form or location, the attraction they feel for the other remains the same. AU Anthology. Sasusaku.





	1. Chapter 1

**Affinity**

**Prompt:** Wings

 **Rating:** T

 **Title:** The Tempting of an Angel

 **Summary:** He is a creature of hell sent out to steal the souls of mortals. She is a heavenly being that found herself strangely entranced by his dark demeanor. Maybe humans are not the only ones he can tempt.

* * *

She peers over edge of the cloud, her wings opening and closing in anticipation. She had yet to locate him and anxiousness was getting the better of her. When she was about to lose hope, a flutter a black passes through her vision.

She watches as his powerful black wings come to a close, his boot-clad feet landing gracefully on the ground as his long worn trench coat billows around him. He walks into the door of a rundown looking establishment causing a chill to pass through its occupants.

Using her heavenly vision, Sakura watches as he sits on a chair at the bar and orders a drink. She secretly longs to taste a sip of that forbidden liquid, or taste anything from the human world for that matter. It all looks so rich and… solid.

She had stumbled across this new habit while in the middle of taking part of her old one. Ino had convinced her to start watching the mortals when heaven got too boring.

"It's so much fun," her blonde friend had said in glee. "You never know what they're going to do, but it's always something foolish."

Sakura had taken the blondes advice and while observing an arguing couple, she had spotted _him._ He had swooped in, visible to her eyes alone. She had seen him begin to whisper into the woman's ear and whatever he had said coaxed her enough to pick up a nearby knife and jab it through her husband's heart.

At first Sakura had been mortified, what being could enjoy such a thing, let alone instigate it, but then she watched as the gasping man's soul had left his body. The wispy white veil that signals a human life rose from the bleeding form. It had started to float up towards the heavens. She found herself egging on the soul, anticipating its reaching of heaven. Right before it could make it, however, the dark being grabbed it in mid-flight. Instantly the soul had darkened to the color of ash, as the demon dragged it down to the depths of hell.

From that moment on, Sakura had been hooked. She couldn't get enough of the man with wings the color of the night sky. She had watched him steal countless people's souls. He had made such a disgusting act seem strangely and horrifyingly beautiful.

Presently, the dark figure leaves the bar and enters a house across the road. Once inside, he enters a small bedroom that houses a sobbing girl. He stalks up to her and clutches her wrist. Pushing a gleaming blade into her open palm, he smirks as she hesitantly accepts it and brings the smiling steel to her scarred flesh.

Sakura watches in horror as crimson liquid spills down the crying girls arm, and her wings begin to shake with anger as the girl begins screaming out, frantically trying to stop the heavy bleeding.

"I don't want this!" She cries as the dark winged being restrains her, preventing the wound from being mended. "I changed my mind, I don't want to die."

_That's enough._

Sakura's body acts before her mind can think about the consequences and leaves her perch to fly down to the human world, something that had been forbidden for centuries. She swoops in and knocks the dark being away from the girl, pinning his shoulders to the floor.

Dark onyx eyes drift up to meet with hers, expressionless as if what had just transpired had not taken him by surprise.

"You finally intervened," he utters smoothly.

Sakura's green eyes widen in shock, but she quickly turns from the demon towards the crying girl.

She huddles in a corner, long hair the color of hazelnuts hanging in her face, a steadily expanding pool of blood surrounding her. The most frightening bit is the wispy veil that begins to outline the girl's body, threatening to leave.

Sakura eyes her with pity and rushes towards her. She feels her bare feet become soaked in the life-giving liquid as she steps next to the girl and grabs her bleeding arm.

With a soft kiss planted on the weeping wound, the flesh knits itself together, not even leaving a scar. Sakura sighs with relief as she watches the girl's soul conceal itself back within her body and her large blue eyes look up at her in amazement.

"Are y-you my guardian angel?" she chokes out, as she takes in the appearance of the pink-haired and winged being standing before her.

"Of course she isn't," a dark and foreboding voice states, from behind the angel.

Sakura spins around to see the demon standing uncomfortably close to her. She shivers at his devilishly handsome features and his proximity alike. His dark hair retained its spiked state, despite their previous scuffle and his dark eyes watch her in amusement.

"After this little stunt, she's nothing but a fallen angel, just like me."

It is at this instant that Sakura realizes the full extent of her actions. She left heaven without permission, she revealed herself to a mortal, and worse of all, she touched a creature from hell.

All three key angelic laws, and she had broken them.

She follows the demons gaze to the tips of her pearly wings and gasps in horror at what she sees.

The bottom few feathers had become as darkly colored as the demon's, a sure sign that heaven has now denied her. She spreads out her wings in order to observe the once pure blanket of cream now dotted with inky black.

Slowly, the angel falls to her knees, trembling in sadness. "I'm tainted," she whispers.

The demon kneels down next to her, his midnight wings brushing against the wooden floor. "I was wondering how long it would take you to finally swoop down here. Now that you have," he leans forward so that he whispers in her ear, then a settle but sharp pain shoots through Sakura's right wing, "you are mine."

Her eyes widen as she realizes what he had just done. "No," she gasps out as she attempts to push away from the handsome demon. As confirmation, he holds up a single, pure white feather in front of her face. As she face turns sheet white, the smirk on the demons face grows wider.

"Welcome to hell, little angel."


	2. A Drop In the Ocean

Affinity

Prompt: Scales

Rating: M

Title: A Drop In the Ocean

Summary: Because he is desperate enough to make a deal with a fish as seductive as her.

* * *

 

The longboat bobs in the water as the small waves hit the side. Six of the sea-hardened men within it watch as the seventh brings a square of cloth out of his pocket.

All the men lean forward as hands, calloused from rough use, pull back the cloth to reveal its contents, a long string of pearls with a teardrop shaped emerald dangling from the middle.

The pirates practically begin salivating at the sight of such an impressive piece of jewelry. It is sure to be worth quadruple its weight in gold.

Ignoring the greedy aura of his crewmen in the boat, the possessor of the necklace tosses it into the ocean.

"Captain, are you mad?" a man yells in outrage while plenty other gasp at the loss of the precious necklace.

The captain's face remains impassive as he studies the water. "They are like any other woman, they don't come cheap," he says, earning a few laughs from the other men.

"Now what?" one asks.

"Now, we wait."

And wait they do, for nearly five hours they sit in the little boat, in between the deserted shore and the Sharigan ship.

Dawn begins to break over the horizon and the crewmembers start to lose hope.

"Maybe we're in the wrong spot," one says.

"Better not be, that necklace could have bought enough rum for a month," another adds.

"I knew he's crazy," yet another begins, "there's no way there's such thing as mer-"

The man stops talking when ripples appear in the water. All of the pirates stare at the spot and gasp when a pink-haired woman breaks the surface. Her features are delicate, her nose small and upturn, her eyes the same color of the emerald that now rests around her neck.

"Captain Sasuke Uchiha," she says with familiarity, her voice strong and joking.

She moves towards the boat and rests her arms on the ledge next to the dark-haired captain.

"It's been a while," she tells him before pushing herself up and gracefully landing on the empty seat at the front.

Now, all the men take in the full sight of the creature. Her pink hair cascades down past her hips, covering her round chest, and where legs should be is a tail consisting of shimmering, light and dark green scales. She lounges in front of the men with all the confidence in the world, her back resting against one side of the boat while her long tail dangles over the other.

She looks like every pirate's dream. Her skin smooth and touchable, her long hair draped over the boat and floating amongst the water, her lithe body adorned with all manner of jewels and precious metals.

"Sakura," Sasuke says, betraying no emotion.

"I think it's been exactly one year and two months," Sakura says, as she moves towards him, the golden bangles on her arms jiggling. The other men in the boat cannot decide whether they should fear the mermaid or kiss her.

"Who gave you that?" Sasuke asks, gesturing to the sapphire ring on her left pointer finger.

"What's it to you?" she snaps, her green eyes burning in anger. She composes herself a moment later and sub-consciously begins fiddling with one of the many necklaces hanging off of her delicate skin. "If I remember correctly, last time you were here, you cut off some of my hair and left."

Her tail slaps the water in emphasis, the motion causing the boat the rock dangerously and the splash raining droplets of salty water over the men.

With the grind of metal against metal, Sasuke's sword is drawn and poised at her neck.

"If you try and tip this boat, I will kill you," he says menacingly as he presses the sharpened edge to her skin.

"Ah," she says in realization, "I figured this wasn't a trip of pleasure." She uses her arms to crawl closer to Sasuke until her nose barely brushes against his. Her soft gaze hardens again as a ribbon of red runs down her throat from moving against the blade. "What exactly do you need from me? One of these rings that you accidently promised to another? A lock of hair for the local trader? Or perhaps, a hot fuck to release some of that pent up aggression?"

Sasuke eyes the pieces of jewelry embellishing her. The majority he recognizes as gifts from himself, but others are unfamiliar, causing a sense of jealousy to wash over him. Her words eat at him on the inside, but externally, he doesn't let anybody else see it.

"I need some scales," he states, eyeing the glittering green of her lower body.

"No way in hell," she spits back before moving away to jump off the front of the boat. Before she can, Sasuke grabs a fist full of her endless tresses and drags her until her naked back is up against his chest.

"Row to the shore," Sasuke orders and, after a moment of hesitation, the boat begins cutting through the water, towards the small beach.

"Sasuke, you bastard!" Sakura protests in outrage as she wiggles around trying to flip the boat. "I will drag you to the bloody depths if you don't-"

Sasuke cuts her off by placing a large hand over her mouth and the familiar feeling of the bottom of the dingy hitting the shoreline urges Sasuke to push the mermaid away from him. He pulls his hand up to his face in order to inspect the bleeding bite mark there.

His other hand holds the ends of some of the petal locks, which he secures his hold of. He needs her and there is no way he will let her slip through his fingers, not this time.

Once the boat stops moving, he throws a boot-clad foot over the rim and onto the moist sand. Standing at full height, he grabs Sakura from under her arms and drags her out of the boat as well.

Laying her down on the beach, far enough away from the water that she can't escape, he begins barking orders at the crew. "Come secure her, but if you steal any jewelry or lay a hand where it shouldn't be, I'll gut you on the spot."

"If you think I'll just let you take them, then you have another thing coming, asshole!" she shouts in protest, her thrashing causing the pearls on the circlet around her forehead to clink against the gold.

"You forced me to do this, Sakura," Sasuke says as her grabs a small dagger from the holster around his waist.

At the sight of the blade moving near her tail, Sakura stops moving and shoots him a wicked grin, "Good luck trying to cut off what's not there."

As if the words were an order to her body, the green scales begin disappearing, or more accurately, sinking into her skin. Within seconds, long, very human, legs replace the large emerald tail.

All the pirates stare at the woman in amazement. After all this time, Sasuke never knew that a mermaid could retain a human form.

Her smirk widens at his facial expression as she stretches out on the sand. Her long pink hair both spread out around her and covering her small breasts.

"You bitch," Sasuke spits out before once again, grabbing hold of her hair and pulling her up to stand next to him. "Stay with the boat," he orders the, openly gawking, crewmen before dragging Sakura down the beach and out of sight.

Once none of the other men can see, Sasuke wrenches Sakura's arm around so that she must face him. "You could grow legs this whole time!" he yells in outrage.

"I grew a lot more than that," Sakura says with a wink as she presses herself up against him. The dark haired man backs up, but stumbles on the uneven sand, causing both of them to tumble to the ground.

Sakura lands on top, straddling his hips with her new legs. Sasuke tries to ignore the feeling of her warmth seeping through his thin trousers as she leans towards him, looking every bit the majestic creature she is.

"Sasuke, I have decided to give you a chance at having some of my scales, even though you just treated me so rudely," Sasuke eyes the now coagulated blood on the side of her neck. "You want my scales, I want to see more of the world. I have a tail, well not at the moment," she lets out a little giggle, "and you have a ship."

"Or," Sasuke begins before changing their positions so that he is pinning Sakura to the beach, "I will just kill you if you don't give me any."

Sakura doesn't let his harsh tone faze her, instead she moves her arms up to wrap around his neck, "it's obvious that you need my scales for something very important, otherwise you wouldn't have come here." She cranes her neck so that he can admire the pearl necklace he had just gifted her, now wrapped around her neck. "You're lucky I'm a sucker for emeralds, or I would have drown you and your crew in a heartbeat."

"I'm sick of this game," Sasuke orders as her presses more of his weight against her. "Turn back." The words are uttered dangerously low, as if he will indeed kill her.

With another mischievous smile, that he has come to loath, Sakura wraps her legs around his hips. "Once I turn full human, I won't get my tail back until the next full moon," the mermaid says as she trails a dainty foot up and down his leg.

"The last full moon was yesterday," Sasuke bites out angrily.

"Well," she says, a sneer coming across her face, "it looks like you have a month to wait."

"There are other mermaids," the captain says, trying to ignore the feel of blood rushing downwards as her foot continues its movements.

"Not nearly as many as there used to be, and nowhere near around here," she leans up so that her bare breasts brush against his thin white shirt, "and you know as well as I that I'm the most social of the bunch."

He realizes the validity of her statement. At this rate he'll be forced to take her with him. His blood already begins to boil as he thinks of how the men will react with such a beauty aboard. Heck, it boils at the thought of having to keep her in his cabin for an entire month.

Sakura. Human Sakura. In his quarters. In his bed.

He suppresses a shudder at the thought, but stiffens when he feels cool lips press against his neck.

"What are you doing?" he asks her, his voice husky from the thoughts of her in his bed.

"I'm persuading you," she murmurs as she moves her hands under his heavy jacket and over his shoulders. "After all, this is my first time having legs again in months, I want to use them."

"Sakura," he warns, but allows her to relieve him of the thick leather. Once his coat is off, she begins expertly removing his weapon holsters. At this, Sasuke realizes that he cannot hold himself back. The fire that once burned inside of him for the mermaid still has some embers left behind and he intends to give them oxygen.

He seals his mouth over hers and begins ravaging it as if she were his life source. He battles her tongue for dominance and once he finds himself winning, moves from her mouth to her neck. She lets out little moans of pleasure, fueling his fire even move.

As he allows his hands to roam over her awaiting body, he feels hers do the same. She pulls his shirt up over his head and begins running her dainty palms up and down his back.

Suddenly, he feels her freeze up. "Wh-what have you gotten yourself into, Sasuke?"

He himself stiffens when he realizes exactly where her hands are. Slowly, as if regretful, he moves off of her and sits up.

"Is this what you need the scales for?" she asks, tracing the black ink that rests over his left shoulder.

The look in his dark eyes is answer enough.

"Very well," Sakura states as she rises and begins brushing the sand off of her naked body. "I will come with you, then we will both be satisfied. I'll get to travel, and you'll get the scales in a months time."

He looks up at her and now realizes that she will indeed be onboard the Sharigan with all of the testosterone driven crew members. At the thought, he tosses his shirt over her head and proceeds to don his hat, coat, and holsters.

"Well," she says happily, "Come on! The world's waiting!" She skips happily down the beach, her too long hair blowing behind her while her too flashy jewelry jangles and her too long legs doing nothing for Sasuke's, now painful, hard-on.

 


	3. Someone Screaming

** Affinity **

**Prompt:** Haunting

 **Rating:** M

 **Title:** Someone Screaming

 **Summary:** She knew from the beginning that breaking into the abandoned hospital was a bad idea, but nobody could have predicted this.

* * *

"Come on, Sakura," a light-hearted voice tells the stubborn girl. "We're teenagers, we're suppose to do stupid things like this."

"Naruto, breaking into a condemned hospital is flat out insane!" Determined green eyes glare at the bright blue ones.

"You're just scared because you believe all the stupid ghost stories," Kiba says as he takes a swig from his beer can.

"Well, it _is_ Halloween," Hinata sputters out, obviously not thrilled about the idea of breaking into the former Konoha General.

"Don't worry, Sakura," Sai says with a small smile. "If we see any ghosts, you can just frighten them away with your ugly."

Sakura clenches her fist, ready to wipe the insincere smirk off his face when Ino calls out.

"Hey, scaredy cats," the blonde yells as she begins pulling on the heavy chains wrapped around the door handles, "I'm sure your crushes would just _love_ to protect you from all the spooks inside."

She shoots them a cheeky wink and both girls' faces burn bright red in embarrassment. Luckily, Naruto and Sasuke are off to the side, inspecting the barred off windows of the rundown building.

"You two are blushing!" Ino squeals with delight, prompting Sakura to run up to her.

"Shut up, Pig!" the pinkette cries as Ino, somehow, manages to break off the chain and pulls one of the heavy, double doors open.

All seven high school students become silent as they look into the dark, rundown building.

"Whoa," Naruto states as he steps closer to the door.

"Well are we just gonna stare at it, or are we actually going to go inside," Kiba says before tossing his empty can to the side.

"Fine, if you're so brave," Ino begins while nudging him towards the threshold, "you can go first."

"Why don't we go in together, Blondie," he says before tugging her arm into the building with him.

Ino lets out a halfhearted squeal before walking down the corridor with Kiba in tow. "Come on, losers!" she yells at the remaining five.

Sakura watches as the two stumble farther down the hallway before disappearing around a corner. A creeping feeling crawls up her spine once the couple is out of view.

Subconsciously, she turns away from the doorway and right into Sasuke Uchiha.

"What's wrong, Haruno?" he asks her, a cocky smirk on his face, his dark eyes glinting with wicked excitement. "You scared?"

Before she can think of a witty retort to respond with, a shrill and feminine scream resounds from within the building.

"That was Ino," Hinata gasps out, her pearl-like eyes wide in fear.

"Hinata, stay here," Naruto orders before running into the building, "Come on, guys!" he shouts once inside. Sasuke and Sai move past Sakura and run down the same path that Ino and Kiba had taken.

Hesitantly, Sakura looks back at Hinata then into the looming building. As much as she does not want to go in creepy building, she knows that Ino is in there and needs her help.

Ino, the girl that skipped out on the biggest party of the year to console Sakura after a bad breakup.

Ino, the girl with whom she has spent an endless amount of nights talking about everything and nothing.

Ino, her best friend since elementary school.

With a deep breath, Sakura makes up her mind.

"I'm going too," she tells Hinata. "If we're not out in twenty minutes, call the cops."

"Sakura, no," Hinata objects in a surprisingly firm tone, a dainty hand grabbing hold of Sakura's hoodie. "Let the guys handle it."

"Hinata, this is Ino we're talking about," she argues, "I won't be able to face her again knowing that I wasn't willing to go in after her."

The Hyuuga girl doesn't say anything else, letting a small nod suffice. She releases Sakura's hoodie and gives the girl a mournful look.

Accepting this as a blessing, Sakura takes a deep breath and darts into the hospital.

Inside it feels as though the temperature has dropped by ten degrees. The paint on the walls is peeling and noxious colored graffiti covers what remains, the majority of it consisting of swear words and gang names. However, when she turns the corner everybody else had, one particular piece causes her to stop and stare.

The words "Death Awaits" are painted over a set of double door in bright red. The color bleeds down the wall from the uppercased lettering and causes a feeling of unease to wash over Sakura. The time it was painted it had probably just been a joke among some teenagers, but for some reason she is compelled to lean forward and touch the crimson streaks.

She reaches a hand out, but before she can touch one of the beaded drops, something grabs her shoulder.

Twisting around she comes face to face with the blonde hair and blue eyes of Naruto.

Before she can say anything, he grabs her arm and runs towards the entrance of the hospital.

"Come on, Sakura-chan," he calls over his shoulder. "There's something wrong with Kiba, it's like he's possessed or something."

_Possesed? What's that supposed to mean? Where's everybody else?_

These thoughts race through Sakura's mind as Naruto continues to race down the hallway with her in tow. Looking ahead, she can see Hinata watching them from outside, a worried expression on her face.

They are only meters away from the outside when the large double doors swing shut as if a strong wind pushed them.

In disbelief, Sakura begins pulling on the doors with Naruto, yelling for help. She doesn't know what her hyperactive, blonde friend had seen, but whatever it was, she does not wish to witness it herself.

Something about this place is off.

She could tell from the moment Ino broke those chains. The moment she had sensed the sinister demeanor and practically pulsating aura from within the building she should have high-tailed and ran. Now, she and five of her closest friends are trapped in Konoha's own embodiment of hell.

"Hinata!" she yells, hoping the girl can hear her through the thick metal doors. "Call the cops!"

"Run away, Hinata!" Naruto calls at the same time, "Get out of here!"

When yet another pull on the seemingly cemented-shut doors proves futile, Sakura turns to the sound of gentle footsteps coming from the end of the corridor.

In the dim moonlight from the dusty window, she is able to make out the dark silhouette of a teenager with dark spikey hair.

Slowly, he moves closer to them, his face becoming illuminated.

It's Kiba and from what she can tell, his facial expression is blank and his eyes appear distanced, as if all consciousness has left him. He continues to walk down the hallway, moving his feet as if they weigh a ton. His blue shirt has dark streaks running across it, streaks that look an awful lot like handprints.

"Kiba?" she asks tentatively. At this, Naruto turns away from the door to see the other teen. Without hesitation, he grabs Sakura's arm once again and drags her into one of the nearby rooms.

"Naruto, what are you doing?" she exclaims once she sees him lock the door and begin pacing around.

The room's dark and she can barely make out its contents. On the right cabinets hang off the wall by the corners and other than the few pieces of trash, the rest of the room appears empty.

"That's not Kiba," Naruto tells her.

"What do you mean?"

"It's like I said before, he's possessed or something," Naruto runs over towards the window and pulls back the thick curtains. She hears a slew of curses as Naruto discovers the thick metal bars over the glass.

"What do you mean possessed? Where's Ino?" Sakura says, panic beginning to overtake her.

Mournful blue eyes look at her.

"No," she gasps, "no, no, no, no." She repeats the word like a mantra, sliding down the door and bringing her arms up around herself. "This is the type of shit from horror movies," she says angrily, "this is not fucking happening." Her best friend is not dead, Kiba is not possessed, and she sure as hell is not trapped in an abandoned hospital.

This is all some stupid nightmare. She'll wake up, she'll go to school on Monday, and she'll go back to secretly pining after Sasuke as Ino pokes fun at her for not "sucking it up and kissing him already".

"Sakura-chan," Naruto begins as he moves over to sit with her. "We need to get out of here."

"Wh-what about the others?" she asks, tears streaking down her face.

"I-I don't know," Naruto replies, seemingly ashamed. "After seeing I-Ino like that, we all just sort of freaked, ya know? Her face was all bloodied, like he kept banging it against the ground."

Sakura buries her face in her arms as choked sobs escape her mouth.

"I'm sorry. Don't think about that right now," he swings an arm over her shoulder in attempt to console her. "Here's what we're gonna do-"

He's cut off when the door behind them starts rattling violently. A startled scream escapes Sakura's voice and the two rush across the room.

With a crash, the door flies off its hinges and into the cabinets, knocking a few of the haphazardly situated pieces to the floor.

Kiba stands in the doorway, the same dead look on his face as he begins moving towards Sakura. Anxiously, she searches the floor for some sort of weapon, and ends up arming herself with a glass bottle.

"Kiba, please," she begs him, "I don't want to hurt you."

As he moves closer to her, she gets a better view of his blood-covered attire. It's then that she realizes what Naruto was saying, this isn't her friend, this isn't Kiba.

With all her might, she smashes the bottle over his head earning a few small cuts on her hands. His forehead begins bleeding, but he doesn't react to the hit. Sakura backs into the wall and prepares herself for whatever may happen, but a blur of blonde and orange darts past her vision.

"Run, Sakura-chan!" Naruto calls as he tackles not-Kiba to the ground. "Find the others!"

Not turning down the opportunity of escape, she runs back to the hallway and around the corner where everybody else had gone upon first entering. Bypassing the creepy writing. Sakura runs down a flight of stairs only to find another looming hallway.

This one has an emergency light flashing at the end. The swirling red casts eerie shadows all along the walls and illuminates a slick, dark trail. She almost screams at the sight and has to prevent herself from wondering whose bleeding so heavily and why.

Next to the trail, she notices the familiar cross-like pattern of converse shoe prints following the path. The only person in the group that wears All-stars is Sasuke.

She weighs her options. She could follow the trail and hopefully find Sasuke, or she could go back up the stairs and wander aimlessly while trying not to run into not-Kiba.

If it is Sasuke's blood, he'll need help. If it's not, then hopefully they'll be able to find a way out of this hellhole together. With new determination in her eyes, Sakura carries on down the hallway, taking care to avoid stepping in the blood puddles.

She follows the gruesome trail to yet another stairwell and cringes at the thought of somebody's bleeding body being dragged down the metal steps.

Hesitantly, she exits the flashing red hallway and into the darkness. Eventually, the ground levels out as she enters, what she supposes is yet another corridor. However, it is too hard to tell since it is as if she has a blindfold on.

Wishing she had the sense to grab a flashlight, she begins feeling her way around. Running her hands along the wall, she eventually finds a door handle and tries to ignore the sticky liquid covering it.

With a quick prayer for better illumination in the room, she pulls the door open, the metal groaning in protest.

She steps into the room to find it much larger than she anticipated. A flashlight that somebody must have dropped rests on the floor, shining it's white light at the opposite end.

Sakura sighs in relief as she sees the familiar lanky figure.

"Sai!" she calls to him. She doesn't care how much of a twat he is, she wants to throw her arms around him and never let him go.

He turns slowly and even in such a dimly lit room, Sakura recognizes the dead look in his eyes.

Quickly, she ducks out of the beam of light and hides behind a flipped over table. Easing back in the darkest corner she puts a hand over her mouth to quiet the sound of her heavy breathing. It's then that she feels a warm wetness seep through the bottom on her jeans.

She feels around the floor and realizes that she had sat right in the middle of a pool of blood. Cautiously, she turns her head to see her best friend staring right at her.

Sakura can't hold in the scream that rips from her throat. Ino's blue eyes, dimmed and lifeless, are the only things on the girl's beautiful body not covered in blood.

At the sound of not-Sai creeping towards her, the terrified girl realizes her mistake. She scrambles to her feet and lets out another strangled cry when a door that she had yet to pass through flies open.

"Sasuke!" she cries out at the sight of his tousled, black spikes, and panicked dark eyes, eyes full of emotion and life.

Eagerly, she scrambles over the upturned table, but trips and hits her elbow on the tiled floor.

Thinking quickly, she grabs the flashlight from in front of her and sprints to where Sasuke is.

He gestures for her to enter the room before slamming the door shut and pulling a large table in front of it.

"Sasuke," she pants, "what the hell is happening?"

He turns on her, his onyx eyes burning with fury. "Why the fuck did you come in here?"

"I needed to make sure for myself... to see if Ino really... if she really," Sakura begins to yell back, but just ends up quietly choking on her own words.

"Why didn't you just stay outside?" he asks, his tone biting.

"You can't possibly expect me to wait around while my friends are in trouble."

Sasuke pinches the bridge of his nose as if trying to regain his composure. Exhaling dramatically, he turns to peer through the window on the door.

The adrenaline that Sakura had been running on leaves her system causing her knees to shake and give out. As she sinks to the ground, she covers her face with her hands, trying to hide the rapidly pouring down tears from Sasuke.

"We need to get out of here," he tells her as the sound of banging comes from the other side of the door.

"The front door's sealed shut," she informs him, eliciting a sling of curses.

After an angry punch to the wall, Sasuke comes to sit next to her on the ground.

"Once we went down the first set of stairs and saw Ino's blood," Sakura winces at the words, "Everything just went to shit."

They sit on the ground not speaking as the repetitive rumble of fists hitting the door continues. Their thoughts race through the possible explanations of what has occurred so far, none of the conclusions very pleasant or plausible for that matter.

Then suddenly, it's silent.

Both Sakura and Sasuke move towards the door to peer through the narrow window. Sakura shines the light through the opening and Sasuke has to wrap a hand around her mouth to prevent her from screaming.

Outside the door stands Sai, Kiba, and Naruto, their dead eyes peering through the thick glass, blood running down their faces.

Sasuke wraps his arms around Sakura more securely and pulls her over to a corner of the room. They ease slowly to the ground, Sakura's back pressed against his chest, her body resting between his long legs.

Looking around, Sakura finally sees the far wall of the room. Small, rectangular, metal doors cover it.

"Oh my god," she says under her breath. "Are we in the morgue?"

Sasuke doesn't reply, but spins her body so that she faces him. "Don't look," he tells her bringing a hand up to her face. "Just look in my eyes."

His face looks so intense. It is calm with conflicting stress showing in the set of his eyebrows. "We're going to die, aren't we?"

Then, in an act so gentle and so unlike Sasuke, he wipes away her tears with his thumb.

"You are not going to die," he tells her calmly, "not here."

"I guess now's a bad time," Sakura says with a humorless chuckle, "but I've had a crush on you since kindergarten."

Sasuke looks down at her, endless eyes wide with shock. "Then I guess it's a bad time for me to tell you that I've been in love with you since middle school."

"Wha-what?" she stutters out.

And there in the dank morgue of an abandoned hospital with their possessed friends trying to kill them, Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno shared their first kiss.

"We are going to get out of here," Sasuke says against her lips, "and I'm going to take you out on a proper date."

All she can do is look up at him with bewildered eyes as a loud crash resounds through the building.


	4. With the Bang of a Drum

**Affinity**

* * *

**Prompt** : Ritual

 **Rating:** M

 **Title:** With the Bang of a Drum

 **Summary:** Rituals must be performed, customs fulfilled, so they will dance in the firelight and feast upon the union of tribes once estranged.

 **Author's Note:**   

_I do NOT know much about Native American customs. These rituals came from my own imagination and are not meant to offend/reflect real Native American traditions._

* * *

She waits within the brush, knowing full well that he is doing the same. He is out there right now, most likely hiding behind the looming willow trunk or crouching in the thick bush.

Treading lightly, she moves closer to the large meadow in between them, sticking to the shadows cast by the brightly shining sun. She walks on her toes to minimize the sound of cracking twigs or crushing leaves. Moving closer to the clearing, she eyes her target.

The large black bear stands at the edge of the meadow, raised on his hunches, scratching his back against a large tree.

She nocks an arrow and aims her bow, but hesitates before letting it fly. She watches as the bear continues about its business when one, two, no three arrows imbed themselves into its stomach.

Letting out a gut-wrenching howl of pain, the bear falls to the grass, its body still except for the staggered movement its labored breathing causes.

She remains frozen in place as she watches a dark form move into the clearing. His dark hair spikes up in the back and a single, shoulder-length braid frames the left side of his face.

He wears dark pants most likely from the skin of a deer and his muscular chest is covered with an impressive breastplate made out of thin strips of bones. He shoulders the ebony bow before turning to look in her direction.

"Come out," he calls to her.

Slowly, Sakura lowers the bow, places the unused arrow back in its quiver, and steps out from the covering of trees and into the meadow.

He tosses her a knife, which she catches expertly. "Finish it off," he orders.

She looks at the struggling creature. It lies on its back, large eyes open and sorrowful, and three black-feathered arrows sticking out from its stomach.

"Sasuke, I can't," she tells him, handing back the knife.

"You have to," he says, refusing to take the sharpened metal. "It's tradition for the female to deliver the final blow as a display of strength to her betrothed."

"An Uchiha tradition," she spits back, throwing the knife to the ground.

"As of tonight, you will be an Uchiha and we will unite our tribes against all others," he says softly, as if not in full support of the idea himself.

"Then the harvesters of the Harunos and the warriors of the Uchihas will form the perfect tribe," she finishes for him, having heard the spiel herself multiple times.

"I know it's against the Haruno's tradition to kill animals," Sasuke lets out a disgruntled sigh before continuing, "so I will help you."

He picks up the weapon and sets it in her dainty hand, one that has only been used for weaving and gathering, before pulling her over to the animal.

"You see, now it is suffering," he places her armed hand in his and moves it towards the bear's neck. "Before delivering the final blow, we must thank it for it's sacrifice and promise not to waste it."

Then, with a swift, strong stroke, he drags the knife across the bear's neck, ending its life.

* * *

The fire crackles as the scent of the meat cooking fills the air and the full moon shines above the dancing flames. Both clans gather, each sticking to their respective sides, shaking lentil filled rattles and blowing into clay flutes. Large drums circle the fire, no more than a foot apart from each other.

Casting a quick glance at the stoic form of Sasuke through the flames, Sakura steps up onto the tanned skin of the large drum nearest her and begins dancing with the beat of the music. A tapping noise adds to the rhythmic beat of the tribal sounds each time her feet hit the instrument.

Slowly, she makes her way around the circle, moving from drum to drum in a flurry of limbs and petals until she stands on the drum smack dab in the middle of the Uchiha clan.

She continues the dance, her rose colored hair flying around her in constant movement with her body, the wooden beads adorning it, clanking together and adding to the savage rhythm of the song. With a low bow, she stares into the dark eyes of her seated betrothed and holds a delicate hand out to him as an invitation to join.

Accepting it, he stands and proceeds to step onto the drum with her. He moves his calloused hands down her arms and just brushes her hips only to have her pull away and leap onto the next drum in line. Remembering his lessons over the Haruno family's traditions, Sasuke moves to the drum behind him so that he must, once again, watch the twirling girl through the flames.

The two dance across from each other, Sakura's movements resembling the tendrils of a willow blowing in the wind, while Sasuke's appearing to belong to a great panther stalking its prey. They move drum to drum, symbolizing the steps of life they have already taken until they meet at the one that Sakura had originally started on. Standing in front of the Haruno clan, Sasuke places his arm over his chest before bowing to them.

We he comes back up, Sakura, a serious expression on her face, snakes an arm through his and lays a hand on his bicep.

Now, with arms locked, they make their way to the apex of the circle where the head of the separate clans sit. The couple steps down from the drum and bow their heads to the two sets of elders.

Fugaku and Mikoto Uchiha rise first. Mikoto leans forward and presses a kiss on each of her soon-to-be daughter in-law's cheeks. Fugaku then turns to Mikoto and retrieves a leather band from around her neck.

He holds the necklace out for Sakura to admire – a simple ornament with a small group of dove feathers framed by ornately carved black beads– before slipping it over her head.

Mikoto then turns to her husband to repeat his actions. The necklace gripped in her thin fingers is an exact replica of the one just given to Sakura, except with black raven's feathers and white beads. She slips it over her son's neck, a small smile illuminating her features.

After giving his son a strong pat on the shoulder, and Sakura a quick kiss on the lips, Fugaku sits back down, followed by his wife. The chief nods his head to Kizashi and Mebuki Haruno and they rise to bestow their own blessings.

Mebuki brings forth a cloth, unwrapping it to show the wooden earring inside. Stepping up to Sasuke, who had to endure the pain of having his ear pierced prior to the ceremony, she slips the hook-like piercing into the fresh hole. Looking him over, she admires the swirling wood now hanging from his left lobe.

She smiles and wraps her arms around him in an embrace as Kizashi pulls back a similar cloth to reveal a cherry blossomed shaped bead. After giving his daughter a quick wink, he slides the bead up one of her thin braids, securing it in place.

Once the Harunos bow to the couple, they resume their seated positions.

Sakura and Sasuke turn to the fire and the rest of the tribes. Using highly decorated knives, each makes a shallow cut across the other's palm, then, join hands to hold them over the fire.

Once the combined blood drips into the flames below, the fire roars larger causing the tribesmen to cheer. Both chiefs stand and move to the side, revealing the path to the couple's new home.

After taking a deep breath, Sakura begins walking down the path with Sasuke, blocking out the shouts of congratulations. She takes small steps, trying to put off the inevitable end of the night as long as she can.

Sasuke stares straight ahead, ignoring her childish actions and upon reaching the entryway, pulls back the thick skin that serves as a door.

Once the skin falls back into place, Sakura freezes up, refusing to move into the wooden hut any farther.

Their "house" is cozy, not large, but not small either. In the center of the wigwam, flares a small fire, filling the room with the smell of burning cedar wood. The smoke vents up into the circular hole in the roof that reveals the bright stars littering the expansive dark blue sky. On the right side of the room lies the pelt of the black bear, that they had hunted this morning, topped with beaded blankets.

The sounds of the celebration outside can be heard as the tribes share a feast, truly merging them into one.

Eyeing the bed makes Sakura's heart beat faster, the nervousness getting the better of her. Right now, she wants nothing more than to run out of the hut and into the woods, never to return again.

But, this is her duty, the union of the great tribes.

Sasuke looks down at her trembling form, her sharp tongue and aggressive demeanor he has come to associate with her, having left at the idea of their consummation.

This infuriating woman is now his wife, and he will not have her fearing him.

"I will be good to you," he tells her, looking into bright viridian eyes that dance in the firelight.

All at once, her trembling stops and a new expression takes over her face, one of resolve and determination. He watches wide-eyed as she kicks off her moccasins and shrugs off the flower-covered dress all in one movement. Thus, she stands before him donning only her wedding necklace and the beads in her hair.

 _This is my wedding night,_ Sakura things to herself, _and here I will prove to this Uchiha a Haruno woman's true strength._

Sasuke mentally praises her body, eyeing the candlelight skin, the soft curves, the pert breasts, the flared hips, the sculpted legs, the petal hair…The list of her attributes runs through his head before he finally settles on one final thing, the brown ink of intricate vines running up her abdomen and curling right under the swell of her breasts.

With his beautiful, naked betrothed standing before him in the blazing light of the fire, Sasuke feels a lustful heat run down his body.

Before he can move, she practically pounces on him, forcing him to fall backwards onto the bearskin. He watches intently as she removes his leather pants and shoes before traveling her hands up to deal with the breastplate. He helps her slip his clothing off leaving him bare beneath her.

Sakura leans forward, trailing her hands up his chest, her fingers halting at the sight of a large scar pertaining of teeth and claw marks.

"What happened here?" she asks, her hand traveling up and down the marks.

"My first encounter with a wolf when I was eight," he tells her, voice husky from the desire building within him.

The puckered skin takes up the majority of the space on his side, it had been a bad injury, and one that all the villagers thought would kill him.

He personally has a certain fondness for the mark. Pulling through the fever and infection that it had caused had been proof of his strength even at such a young age.

Now, as Sakura begins skirting delicate kisses over the darkened skin, her tongue flicking out and tasting his salty perspiration, he begins to like the scar even more.

She continues her voyage up his body, pausing momentarily to admire the hawk tattoo on his arm. Eventually, she reaches his hair and snakes her fingers through it. She strokes the dark feathers and plays with the single braid that she has wanted to touch since she first laid eyes on him all those years ago.

Unable to hold back anymore, Sasuke tilts his head up and crashes his lips against hers. She hums approvingly as he grabs her posterior and begins intensely massaging the soft, rounded skin there.

As their kiss grows mover fevered and his tongue enters her mouth, she begins grinding her hips into his, moaning at the delicious friction it causes. The heat of the fire causes sweat to dampen her skin and it only arouses the pair all the more.

The celebratory sounds of their clansmen swallow up the animalistic grunts and alluring sighs as the couple consummate their marriage. Outside of the wigwam, a nod of understanding is exchanged between two fathers along with a hushed promise to discuss their strengthening enemy in the morning.

* * *


	5. Bubble, Bubble

**Prompt:** Magic

 **Rating:** M

 **Title:** Bubble, Bubble

 **Summary:** When she was told that she possessed magical powers, Sakura Haruno imagined wands, broom, Hogwarts, not this…

* * *

"Alright," the busty woman begins as she sets a large stack of cards on the table. "What you see before you is a deck of tarot cards that date back to the beginning of our kind-"

"Tsunade," the boy interrupts, "is it really necessary to give me the entire introduction for a second time."

"It's tradition, Sasuke," she says sympathetically, after all, it is his second time facing the cards in under a year.

"Like I care about tradition," he says as his eyes narrow in anger, "Just let me get back to my room."

Tsunade rises from her chair, her honey-colored eyes burning with rage.

"You listen here, Uchiha! Don't you dare think for one moment that you are the only one to have lost your Matched." As her voice rises, so does the height of the flames of the candles behind her. "You are by far not the only one to have a tragic past in this academy and if you forget that for even a moment, I will personally make sure you're stuck cleaning up after conjuring class for the rest of the time you remain here."

Sasuke's face stays passive, his own thoughts buzzing with the events of the past couple weeks.

Before Tsunade can explode over his lack of resentment, the only door in the room cracks open and a man with long, dark hair pokes his head in.

"Lady Tsunade there is an woman on the phone about her daughter being a potential candidate for the academy. As Hokage, you should go speak with her; I'll observe young Sasuke for you."

Tsunade takes a deep inhale before shooting one last glance at the stoic teenager. "Thank you, Orochimaru."

She rises from her seat and switches places with the snake-like professor.

The moment the door closes behind the departed woman, Orochimaru leans towards Sasuke, a wicked grin on his face.

"Now, Sasuke, I assume you know what to do," he gestures towards the deck of cards, "Concentrate."

It takes only a moment for the deck of cards to burst from the neat stack and flutter around the room. As the boy disappears from view.

* * *

One second, she had been staring at the ice cream carton wishing for the solid treat to soften to a scoop-able state faster. The next moment though, the container erupted in flames and the smell of burnt lactose filled the kitchen.

Now, she finds herself on a train flipping through the packet that her mother had given her.

"It runs in the family and we always hoped that it would skip your generation like it did mine," her mother had said once the flames had been snuffed out and the kitchen was no longer in danger. "Konoha's Academy for the Magically Gifted is where many others of the Haruno family attended. They'll teach you what this all means and how to control it."

So, here she is flipping through the embellished card paper, reading the necessary information about her new "school".

The flyer is filled with pictures of teenagers looking studious, with cheesy smiles on their faces as they do the simplest tasks. Frankly, it looks like any other expensive prep school flyer.

Well, except for the course selection. It lists classes that are perfectly normal: math, English, cooking, but then a few that are peculiar looking like conjuring, partner magic, basic shape shifting.

_Shape-shifting? Are you serious? I feel like I'm being thrown into a loony bin._

When the train lurches to a halt, she quickly stuffs the packet into her red backpack and retrieves the simple black duffle bag from the overhead container.

After maneuvering through the narrow walkways, she steps off the train, the light load making it easy to get down the narrow steps leading to the platform.

Barely two steps on the cement, a woman with cropped brown hair rushes up to her, taking the duffle bag.

"You must be Sakura Haruno," she says before making a motion with her hands that sends the duffle bag into oblivion. The woman ignores Sakura's panicked facial expression as the girl looks around to make sure nobody else on the platform noticed the unnatural disappearance of the bag.

Still in a stake of shock, the pinkette nods her head slowly.

"My name's Shizune and I'm the handler responsible for the girls at KA," she tells her before extending a hand to shake.

Sakura reaches forward and gently grabs the woman's palm, only to find herself standing in a large entry hall the moment their skin touches.

Emerald eyes widen as her brain tries to figure out what just happened. One second she was on the train platform and now she's standing in the center of a chalk circle.

Her head whips around and she finds a masked man with spikey silver hair, now resting his hands on Shizune's shoulders.

"Hello," he greets, the outline of a small smile forming beneath his mask, "I'm Kakashi Hatake, Shizune's Match."

"Is that a fancy word for boyfriend?" Sakura asks, her head still reeling from the transportation spell.

"Of course not," Shizune says as she wiggles out of Kakashi's grasp, a blush appearing on her cheeks. "You'll learn all about it in a little bit."

She clears her throat to ease some of her embarrassment and continues speaking. "Your bag is up in your room, along with your new roommate who will take you to Lady Tsunade's office. Just go up these stairs and it's the first door to the right."

Hesitantly, Sakura moves away from the (not really) couple and begins climbing the grand staircase that rests in the very center of the foyer. She forces herself to take deep breaths with each step, trying to convince herself that this is all a strange dream.

Taking the route that Shizune instructed, Sakura finds herself facing a door. Now, there is nothing spectacular about the door, in fact, it is rather plain, painted white, average height, smooth and engraving free. It's what lies behind the door that intimidates the pink-haired girl.

Roommate.

That word gives her the chills.

_A witch as a roommate. What if she turns me into a frog or something? Well, I guess I'm a witch too…_

A sense of nausea washes over her as the reality settles in.

Witch, magic, broomsticks…

Mustering up her courage, Sakura turns the knob and pushes the door open, only to find how normal it all really is.

There's two beds leaned up against opposite walls with desks sitting adjacent to them, a large window in the center of the room blowing the wispy curtains around, a pretty girl with blonde hair and blue eyes reclining on one of the beds, and a pale-skinned boy with dark hair sitting next to her.

"Uh," Sakura begins lamely, "I'm Sakura Haruno. I guess I'm your new roommate."

"Oh right!" the girl says before practically leaping off the bed. "I'm Ino Yamanaka and this," she gestures to the boy, "is Sai."

"Uh, hi" Sakura extends her hand towards the girl in greeting, but baby blue eyes simply stare at it.

"I recommend not offering your hand quite so readily around here," Ino tells her. "Some of the more advanced students, myself included, can do all sorts of things when you offer them skin-to-skin contact. So, unless you're willing to let others see all your deepest darkest secrets, I recommend investing in some gloves."

This causes the pinkette to jerk her hand back and begin subconsciously rubbing it with the other one.

"Anywho," Ino continues "Sai and I our Matches so you'll probably be seeing a lot of him around. Speaking of which, I'm suppose to get you to Tsunade."

Ino begins pushing Sakura right back out the door she had just come through as a soft chuckle from Sai follows them out.

"Wait, so are you two dating?" Sakura begins as Ino continues navigating them through the large hallways.

"Oh heavens no," the blonde says with a laugh. "Sai doesn't play for our team if you catch my drift. I'm actually dating this other guy named Shikamaru, but he's matched up with that bitch Temari," her blue eyes narrow in anger. "She rigged those cards, frizzy haired freak."

Sakura doesn't exactly follow Ino's words, so she remains silent. Instead, she finds herself admiring the artwork that lines the hallways. Painted portraits of different regal looking couples along with pictures that almost look like scenes from a prop heavy ballet. Though, for a boarding school, she finds it odd that there are no other students or teachers walking through the corridors. It's almost like she and Ino are completely alone.

"So, anyways, this is Tsunade's office, she's the current Hokage which basically means that she's like the Witch Queen," she moves closer and whispers in Sakura's ear, "though she's more like the Bitch Queen because of her temper."

The double doors that are, once again, plain white and rather dull swing open by themselves and Ino quickly shuts her mouth.

"Thank you for that introduction, Ino," a tense voice says from within causing the blonde-haired girl to pale slightly.

A very busty woman emerges from the doors and rests her honey-colored eyes on Sakura.

"So, Miss Haruno, shall we go conduct the test of the cards?"

"The what?" Sakura can't help herself from asking.

"You'll see," Tsunade answers back cryptically. "Ino, take her to the room, I'll be along shortly."

* * *

The girls walk down more empty corridors and by now Sakura's anticipation is growing. Ino babbles away about something or another, but Sakura has tuned her out.

Suddenly, the sound of footsteps echoes down the corridor as a boy with dark spikey hair turns the corner and begins walking towards them. Almost as if in slow motion their eyes lock as he passes by them. His are dark, endless, dead.

The second his footsteps are no longer audible, Ino leans forward to whisper in Sakura's ear. "Sasuke Uchiha. All the girls are secretly in love with him."

Remembering his appearance, Sakura can certainly see why. He is beautiful with his aristocratic features and alabaster skin, more than that, he carries an aura of mystery.

"Everybody used to want him as their Match, until the _accident_."

"What accident?" Sakura asks, unease washing over her.

"Two weeks ago he and his partner, Karin, were doing some sort of spell during the night. The next morning, Karin was dead and Sasuke was passed out on the floor, the remnants of the ritual were still scattered around the room.

"The teachers wouldn't tell us what spell they were trying to do, or what went wrong, and Sasuke won't speak to anybody about it," she lets out a light scoff, "like that's anything new. Whatever they were doing, it was something dark," Ino continues, "I saw some of the mediums they had used and one was a large python, it's stomach was split all the way down the middle and blood was all over the floor." She shudders in emphasis.

"Anyways, that's the reason we aren't allowed to room with our Matches anymore," she sounds a bit regretful. "Sai was such a good roommate too."

"Wait," Sakura interrupts Ino's musings. "What exactly are Matches?"

Ino lets out a little laugh, "Oh right, you're new." She laughs some more causing Sakura to become frustrated with the fact that nobody has actually answered that question yet. "Don't worry, Tsunade will explain everything." Ino opens yet another door and gestures inside. "Go in and take a seat," with a quick wink and a puff of smoke, Ino disappears leaving Sakura by herself.

* * *

"What you see before you is a deck of tarot cards that date back to the beginning of our kind." Tsunade says as she straightens the deck of black-backed cards. "Magic is not as it is portrayed in the media. It is a matter of balance. While one is able to conduct simple spells, a pair is needed to prevent any unsavory consequences."

Tsunade begins fiddling with one of the necklaces around her neck. "Each witch or warlock has a Match, a perfect complement of the opposite sex that will balance them out. Magic conducted solo is harmful to the user and much more difficult to control, but a Match allows you to adopt their power as well and make things run much more smoothly.

"These cards will show us who your destined Match is."

Sakura eyes the cards that sit on a table all the way across the room. They must be a pretty big deal if they're going to show her who she's "destined" to be with. "So what do you want me to do exactly?" she asks at Tsunade's expectant look.

"Pick a card."

Sakura begins to rise from the chair, but Tsunade lets out a "tut tut", and waggles her finger. "Pick a card from there."

"How am I suppose to do that?" Sakura exclaims. She has only found out about magic a little over a day ago, and didn't Tsunade just say something about performing magic alone is dangerous?

"Concentrate on the cards," the blonde woman says cryptically.

Rolling her eyes at the thought that this all seems to come out of a bad movie, Sakura stares down the deck of cards. She stares and stares and stares.

Right when she feels as if nothing would happen and Ashton Kutcher would pop out saying that she had been "Punk'd", the deck starts to shake.

Her eyes widen as the cards seemingly explode, sending them floating through the air.

Startled green eyes look up only to see flashes of scenery moving before her. She can only make out a few images,

A man sitting up in bed, crying, as nine swords spout from his back,

Women chained to the throne of winged, horned man,

A snake twisting around the body of a youth,

Gold coins falling from the sky.

The images begin to slow and Sakura suddenly finds herself standing in darkness. It is as if she is in a field where the grass has been dyed black and the sky is drained of all starlight. The large moon hangs upon the horizon, the silhouette of a cloaked humanoid figure standing in front of it.

It turns to her as wicked looking scythe appears out of the air. Hands belonging to a skeleton reach from the cloak and grasp the weapon. The blade shines in the moon light, almost taunting her with its silver smile.

The figure's head turns toward her and Sakura finds herself staring at the pearl coloring of bone that has been picked clean. The skull, though it has no eyes, stares straight at her, beckoning her forwards.

All logic screams at her to run away, to hide from the very bringer of death. However, her body moves forward, following an unspoken promise of something she cannot put a name on.

She reaches a hand out to place it in the ossein-like palm of the reaper –

Then she is gasping, crying out as a fire seems to consume the fingertips that were only a moment ago touching the smooth coolness of bone.

* * *

"This is troubling indeed," the white-haired man says after Tsunade finishes describing the situation to him.

"I think the answer is obvious," Orochimaru says calmly.

"What's so obvious about this situation?" Tsunade yells as she slams her fists on the table.

"The same happened with Sasuke's last test, minus the crying of course," the snake-like man reminds her. "He seemed rather accepting at being pulled into Death."

"This type of thing has never happened before, and now twice in one week?" Tsunade blows a stray piece of hair out of her face as she begins storming around the room.

"A student being pulled into the cards during their Match Test is unheard of, let alone the Death card."

"Thank you for stating the obvious Jiraiya, you've been a big help," the only woman in the room mutters sarcastically as she continues pacing.

"Match them," Jiraiya offers causing Tsunade to stop pacing, only to whip her head around in his direction fast enough to get whiplash.

"Are you out of your goddamn mind?" she exclaims. "To put two with such unheard of amounts of power together when _He_ is beginning to make an appearance again. Are you already forgetting what happened a couple of weeks ago?"

"A student died, how could I forget that?" Jiraiya retorts. "But you can't deny the fact that this means they are indeed Matches of the highest caliber.

"And if they are and _He_ really does decide to show up again, we will need them on our side," he finishes.

"And what side is that, Jiraiya." Orochimaru cuts in, "You are a 'wandering sage' as you so like to call yourself. What happens if _He_ emerges while you're off chasing after women?"

"That brings me to my next point," Jiraiya glances at Tsunade who has begin drinking sake straight from the bottle. "I'm returning to the KA for good and will resume my previous status as professor."

The Hokage chokes a bit on her alcohol at Jiraiya's words.

"As professor, I vote that we allow Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno to carry out their Matched bond and study as a pair."

* * *

Sakura wakes up to the feeling of somebody touching her hand, the very one that is currently wrapped in bandages due to her little 'incident' with Death.

Her eyes flutter open only to be met with midnight pools that remind her of the world she had been sucked into.

She sits up and jumps back until she hits the headboard of the bed. Confused, she looks around to find herself in an infirmary of sorts. As per the usual theme of the academy , everything is white, the curtains dividing her from the rest of the room, the floor tiles polished until they shined, and the sheets on her hospital bed, which she finds surprisingly soft.

However, one thing does not look like the rest, the possessor of the midnight eyes clad in dark jeans and an even darker T-shirt, hair reminiscent of raven feathers completing the contrast.

"Sasuke Uchiha?" she asks the boy who silently moves towards her and takes her hand once again.

She watches at a loss for words as he begins unwrapping the gauze from around her fingers.

His own hands are clad in black leather gloves reminding her of Ino's earlier warning in getting herself a pair.

When he removes the dressings from her hands, the black charred skin of her fingertips is revealed to her for the first time. She lets out a sound of anguish, causing Sasuke to look up a her for a moment.

His gaze locks with hers as he removes the glove on his own hand. She gasps at what she sees.

The black char disfigures his pale skin as well, however it travels all the way to his wrist. He glances at her once more before pressing his scarred hand to her own.

She has an urge to jerk away as a strange cooling sensation washes over her heated skin, but Sasuke holds her in place muttering an almost silent "Watch."

It is an obvious order, and Sakura obeys eying their hands as the black scar fades until there are just silvery spider web-like lines in its place.

The moment the last of the black disappears from Sasuke's skin, he pulls away from her and slips his glove back on. Pulling a similar pair from his pocket and tossing them on Sakura's lap.

"Tsunade wanted me to give you these and to tell you to keep quiet about what happened," with that said, he pulls back the curtain and begins walking away.

"Wait!" she calls out causing him to turn around and stare at her as if he were bored, "I don't understand."

An unrecognizable emotion flashes through his eyes before he turns away once again.

"Join the club."


	6. Something Precious

**Affinity**

**Prompt:** Crystal

 **Rating:** T

 **Title:** Something Precious

 **Summary:** The most monumental duty, the ultimate sacrifice.

* * *

He charges up the stone steps, sword raised and armor clinking with the movement. Mercilessly, he cuts down anybody that happens to cross his path, anybody who dares to deter him from his goal.

Making it to the entrance of the temple, all the Guardians having been cut down, he moves swiftly over the marble floor while his companions following closely behind.

If he had been in the mood to admire his surroundings, Sasuke would have gazed at the intricate carvings engraved into towering pillars, iron depictions over expanse frosted windows, and molded ceilings stretching out through the seemingly endless corridor. Darkness, having fallen long before the Uchiha's initial assault, fills the hall, the only light coming from numerous candelabras and the occasional flicker of lightening.

After what seems like an hour of walking down the uniform passage, the group of men happens upon two impressive double doors seemingly made out of carved ivory. With little hesitation, Sasuke orders some men to push them open.

The large chamber that is revealed to them looks completely different from the old fashion and detailed foyer they just left. The first word that comes to mind is 'white' followed quickly by 'modern'.

Bluish-white lights projecting from the floor fill the room, revealing the large stage-like plane in the center.

Four women sit around the rectangular platform, sweeping white robes covering their bodies with hoods hang over their heads.

Upon seeing Sasuke, they all rise in unison before stepping down to stand before him.

"Have you come to say a prayer, sir?" one of them asks in a tinkling voice.

"No," to add emphasis, he flicks his katana to the side, sending the blood once adorning it flying to the floor.

"You are here for the crystal then," another woman says, her voice identical to the first.

"We can't kill them," whispers his right hand man, the sight of the calm, uniform women unnerving him.

Without warning, Sasuke makes a large sweep with his weapon, vast enough to cut through each of the women. As the blade touches them, however, their bodies disperse into mist.

"Intelligent," a voice, just like that of the women says from above.

Sasuke raises his eyes to see yet another figure in a large white robe descending from a twisting staircase that leads down from a darkened doorway cut within one of the walls. With each step, the immaculate fabric moves to the side revealing porcelain legs and small, bare feet that are decorated with delicate silver chains.

The room is filled with anticipation as she slowly makes her way down from the high platform.

She comes to stand in front of the group of men, her face from the nose up hidden by the hood. Nonetheless, Sasuke still acknowledges when her gaze rests upon his katana and the blood now splattered on the luminous floor.

"You killed the Guardians," she states her tone neither accusing nor saddened.

It is not a question, but Sasuke nods in response anyways. "I'm here for the crystal."

"Isn't everybody?" she asks with a cruel chuckle. "The crystal, the ultimate power. The most generous giver, or the most destructive destroyer."

Her passive tone causes anger to bubble up within Sasuke, urging him to raise his blade to her neck.

She only reacts by lifting her hands and throwing back her hood.

Emerald eyes filled with fire gaze up at him through rose-colored eyelashes, but her mysterious coloring is not what catches his eye. Hanging around her neck on a silver chain is a large crystal with an eerie glow to it.

Without thinking, Sasuke slits her throat. Her eyes widen for a moment before a large wave of crimson waterfalls down her neck, marring the pure white fabric.

As her legs give way, the slayer catches her lifeless body. Ignoring the slight gasps from the men around him, he flips the woman over. Her hand hits the floor with a sickening slap, splattering the pool of blood gathered there.

Grasping the crystal her gives it a strong tug, expecting the clasp to give way. However, the lavaliere refuses to loosen and her whole neck jolts up with the action.

With an irritable huff, Sasuke attempts to break the chain with a dagger, but to no avail. He throws the weapon to the ground and rises, wanting to kick something in frustration. He settles for the knife and punts it across the room, the action causing the screech of metal to resound.

A frightful gasps causes him to whirl back around and face his men. He notices all of their gazes back on the body of the woman. He turns to assess the damage done and is shocked to see the blood on the floor flowing back towards her neck. Even the crimson that had dyed her dress glides back into the narrow wound, not even leaving a stain to account for it ever being there.

He watches in crude fascination as the flesh of her throat knits itself back together leaving it as the flawless column it was before his attack.

Emerald eyes flutter open turning a blank stare to Sasuke.

"You really are desperate," she says. Her voice betrays no emotion as she gracefully rises from her lying position and moves to, once again, stand in front of the onyx eyed man. "So tell me," she pauses, "what is it you need my power for?"

* * *

"I never expected the world to look like this," the woman, Sakura, states as she watches a blue butterfly dance between bright yellow flowers. Her horse, a white mare of course, whinnies in response. "The world is so much different than I imagined, all the diverse terrains and colors, even the weather changes."

He suppresses an eye roll, having come used to her naivety in the past couple days of travel. So far he has learned that she lived her whole life within the Crystal's Temple, having been tutored by the priests and told stories of the outside world by the Guardians. When she was born, she could barely breathe, and her parents, having lived in the nearby town, brought her to the temple. The priests placed the crystal around her neck and she was healed, however, the chain could not be removed, binding her to the crystal forever.

 _An embodiment of the crystal itself,_ she had told him. _A glorified storage container for the power._

His thoughts are interrupted when his own horse halts suddenly before rearing up and nearly tossing Sasuke from its back.

A rain of arrows flies from the sky, piercing a few of the other men's steeds. Shouting orders at his men to strike back at the attackers, he scans the chaos for a flash of pink. He watches in horror, as Sakura's own horse is struck, causing it to begin bucking the girl off.

Gaining control over his animal once more, Sasuke guides it towards Sakura, before pulling her off of the wild mare and onto his own horse. Quickly, he removes his cloak and tosses it over her head.

With luck, the attackers are simply robbers targeting travelers; on the other hand it could be somebody trying to intercept them specifically. Either way, it is best to keep Sakura concealed from view.

Green eyes peer over the dark cloth, taking in the scene around her. She watches as Sasuke's men expertly dodge the airborne ammunition, until one is taken off guard and an arrow pierces his chest. With a shout of exclamation, she begins trying to wiggle out of Sasuke's grasp. Her squirming causes her to fall off of the horse, but she lands on her feet as graceful as ever.

Sasuke shouts at her to come back, but the blur of pink disappears before his eyes. He scans the field, the arrows having stopped now that his men had begun to fire back. Eventually, he spots her kneeling next to a fallen man.

Dismounting his horse, he rushes over to her, ready to scold her for taking off like that. However, curiosity gets the better of him as he watches her fearlessly pull out the arrow and lean over the man.

"He's dead," Sasuke tells her, trying to get her back on his horse.

"You forget," she responds quietly before brushing back the man's hair and lowering her lips to his, "I hold the power of life."

Sasuke watches, a tight feeling tugging at his gut, as her lips linger upon the dead man's. He turns away not wanting to witness whatever it is the crystal bearer is doing.

A strangled gasps startles him as he returns his eyes to the once corpse. The man continues gasping and gulping at the air, his eyes focused solely on Sakura's face.

"Now you can watch son grow up," she whispers before falling forward. Sasuke moves without a thought and wraps his arms around her before she can hit the dirt. His own frightened gaze locks with the other man's as they realize what just took place.

* * *

He watches her like a hawk as she begins shifting around. He finds the movement comforting seeing that she has been motionless for hours. It is a good thing too because hours is how long Sasuke needed to process what had occurred.

He has heard stories about the great crystal how it can cure anything, but this had been his first time witnessing that power first hand. That man had been dead, and dead means gone forever.

End of story.

But no.

With the powers within her, this woman brought him back.

Her eyelids flutter open and Sasuke is instantly by her side. "What the hell was that?" he questions, frustration making his voice sound harsher than he meant.

"The crystal," she whispers while shakily trying to sit up. The arm she uses as support gives out and Sasuke reaches out to catch her once again.

"So what, the crystal has the ability to bring anybody back to life, no questions asked?" his mind fills with the images of his murdered family. "Why the hell would you want to keep that power hidden?"

"It is not as simple as you make it sound," she answers sternly while shrugging off his hold on her arms. "Not everyone can be revived."

Rising to her feet, she begins stretching her stiff muscles. "The crystal searches the person's mind and deems them worthy or not of revival."

Anger flares through Sasuke at this. "Still, why not give anybody a chance to use it?"

"It is not without consequence," as if to emphasize her point, she sways on her feet, almost falling to her knees.

"You-" Sasuke begins, but she cuts him off.

"I already told you that my body is merely a vessel for the power. Otherwise," she pauses, peering straight into his eyes, "you would not need me to come along and restore the world's core."

Realizing what her words are implying he finds himself shutting down, reverting back to his emotionless façade.

"We need to get moving," he tells her before throwing the blanket she had been laying on over her shoulders and shouting orders at his men.

* * *

"Why were you chosen to save your world?" She asks her body turned to face him as they both sit on his midnight colored stallion.

He hesitates to respond, before looking into her imploring green eyes. "Just like you have received power from the heavens, I have received it from this earth." His allows his eyes to flash red, revealing his power to her.

"The Sharigan," she breathes out, much to his surprise.

"You've heard of it?" he asks, directing his attention back to guiding his horse.

"Yes, but I always thought it a myth," she pauses as if in thought. "So what caused you to break in such a way that you sought the darkness for power?"

"We should take a break," he states, effectively avoiding her question.

* * *

More days pass and the effects of the diminishing life of the world have grown more apparent throughout their travels. The sun no longer rises leaving everything in darkness, foliage is brown and dried out due to not receiving nourishment from the ground, and wildlife has been replaced by vicious creatures known as Shadows which attack anything on sight.

The Shadows had slowed down the group's travels quite a bit, forcing them to fight or flee. On the tenth day of strenuous navigation, they finally reach the cavern that leads to the heart of the world. By now it is in its final moments, and onslaughts of earthquakes force the group to travel by foot through the dark cave, guided only by the glowing light of the crystal.

It is while they are walking through a particularly narrow cavern that the ground begins violently shaking. Stalactites begin falling from the ceiling and deep rumbling alerts the group of a cave in.

Before Sakura can even begin to run, a large body crashes into her and knocks her out of the way of a large falling boulder.

Once regaining her bearings, she finds herself looking up into the unfocused obsidian eyes of none other than Sasuke.

His breaths come out in strangled gasps, his back having been crushed by the falling rock. Gently moving out from under his body, Sakura rests his head in her lap.

"You idiot," she tells him, tears flowing from her eyes. "Why would you do that? I am unable to die."

"Hn," he grunts out before adding, "instinct."

Sakura watches as his eyes close and immediately makes up her mind. Lowering her lips to his, she begins the process of revival, praying that he is worthy of it.

She is assaulted with various flashes of his life. Him as a child hunting with a boy that looks like an older version of himself. Him running into a beautiful woman's embrace as she ruffles his hair.

Sakura's heart drops as she finds herself watching him walking into his house only to find the corpses of his parents laying in a pool of blood, the same older boy from before standing with a katana raised over the damage.

_"Big brother? Why would you do something like this!" he shouts before falling to his knees._

_"I have found the ultimate power, Sasuke."_

The remaining images rapidly flicker by her. A small boy reaching into the darkness for power, clutching his eyes as the power of the Sharigan takes its hold. A teenager now, shouting into the sky as he kneels over the corpse of his brother. A young man as the council dotes upon him the task of reviving the world. Him charging into the temple striking down the Guardians and Priests. Remaining by her side as she lies unconscious for hours after reviving one of his men.

Her hands begin to shake as she breathes life into him. Mentally crossing her fingers she sits back on her heels and waits.

A second later, his deep inhales resound through the cave. Sakura lets out a sigh of relief and before she can stop herself, she throws herself on to him. Tears spill down her face. She only catches a glimpse of Sasuke's surprised features before all goes black.

* * *

After giving himself some time to recover from dying and coming back, Sasuke lifts Sakura into his arms and begins continuing through the series of caverns.

During his brief moment of restoration, a large group of his men stumbled upon him. One look at his shaken form and another at the unconscious girl and the men easily put two and two together.

"We need to hurry," are his only words for them as he quickly darts through the passageways. Shadows begin emerging from the deep crevices in the ground, but Sasuke fights his way through them.

In the nick of time, the men find themselves standing in a large hollow. All halt in their tracks and stare at a large light seeming to be suspended in the very center of the cavern. It dims in each passing moment, proof of its depleting force.

"The heart of the world," a man whispers to Sasuke's right.

Sasuke finds himself, along with all the others, gawking at the brilliance. He might have stood there forever if not for a fresh wave of tremors fracturing the earth. As numerous Shadows materialize, he leans Sakura against the stone wall before pulling his katana out to cut down the dark beings.

The shattering of the floor beneath him throws Sasuke off balance as a fresh batch of Shadows emerge from the dying earth. He throws himself into the fray, completely unaware of a particular white-robed woman regaining consciousness.

* * *

Her eyes crack open and it takes a moment for her vision to clear. When it does she finds her eyes drawn to a brilliant white light. Her body begins moving on its own, rising from the ground, stepping forward, guiding itself to its purpose.

This is what she has lived her whole life for, as a vessel for the ultimate power. A power that has always meant to be returned.

This is what the priests have always trained her for.

This is why the guardians have always protected her.

This is her life's purpose.

So why is she having second thoughts?

Breaking from her trancelike state, she glances behind her, at the dark haired man who has showed her a different aspect of humanity, one that she would have never witnessed from within the sanctuary. Watching as he moves gracefully through the motions of a born swordfighter, she feels her heart clench.

The crystal around her neck brightens and an image of young children with inky hair and emerald eyes running through a field of wild flowers presents itself to her.

A single tear runs down her cheek at the thought. "Why are you showing me this?" she whispers.

" _To give you a glimpse of real life,"_ an inhuman voice echoes through her mind. " _You have served us well. You deserve this taste of being human."_

More realistic thoughts that could be mistaken for memories flood in: warm arms wrapping around her at night, seeing the same dark hair streaked with silver in age, her own wrinkled hand held firmly by a stronger one.

It is at this point in time that Sasuke finally notices her standing beneath the dimming orb of light. She notices the slight widening of his eyes, panic evident on his face. Forgetting about his comrades and enemies alike, he darts forward, arm outstretched.

Sakura finds herself reaching towards him as well, a sad smile appearing on her face.

_What could have been…_

The thought lingers in her mind as she feels herself being lifted towards the world's weakening heart, her feet hovering above the ground as she gradually ascends. A strange warmth tingles in her chest, rapidly spreading through her limbs.

She watches as her body glows the same white light of the crystal.

Sasuke finally makes it to her and shoots his hand out as if to grab her ankle, but she is too far up for him to reach. Her eyes lock with his one last time and the heartbreak she sees there makes her wish that he would have dragged her back to the ground, that he would have kissed her passionately. A kiss of love, not revival.

As she merges with the light of the world, she finds her thoughts solely focused on the future that she wishes could have been.

* * *

He had been just a moment too late.

If his reach would have been but a centimeter higher he would have been able to secure a hold on her glowing body. Alas, he falls to his knees in despair, his arm still reaching up towards her.

He watches as her body crystalizes, a sad smile forever sculpted on her face. Bright light begins shining all around her as she becomes the world's life source, the heart.

The bright light dissipates the remaining Shadows and mends the smaller fissures that had appeared in the ground.

Even though its brilliance stings his eyes, he can find neither the energy nor the will to turn away.

A bitter laugh escapes his throat. The fates are cruel. Having him fall in love with a woman who must sacrifice herself or allow the very world to perish. Like everybody he has loved, she is taken from him.

Looking up at her hovering body, he notices a single drop of light fall. Merely turning up his palm allows him to catch the glistening object.

Examining it closely he recognizes as a teardrop shaped crystal.

 _"Sasuke Uchiha, you have proven your commitment not only to the world, but the crystal,"_ the voice rings through his mind mysterious, yet distinctly feminine, reminding him of the first time he spoke with Sakura, or rather, ran a sword through her illusional bodies. _"You are hereby given the title of Guardian of the Crystal and therefore of the heart of this world."_


End file.
